In a recent interview with ESPN, “Captain America” voiced his opinion on British contender, Michael Bisping, in the Middleweight division.

“He’s right up there in the top four or five guys in that weight class….You can split hairs on deciding who the No. 1 contender is. He’s coming off a great outing against Jason Miller, weathered a storm and had the conditioning and great technique to finish the fight well. He’s one of the top guys so why not?”

Likewise, Bisping also believes he is ready for a crack at the Middleweight title. After decisively defeating Jason Miller, Bisping gave a post-fight interview with Sherdog.com, requesting a top five middleweight contender and a title shot in the near future.

“I’ve dedicated my life to this sport, I want the respect I deserve, and if I had lost tonight, it would have been a big step back for me.”

“Everybody says that all my opponents gas. You know, I mean, I fight at a frenetic pace, I always do…and I train like that, nobody works as hard as me, and where I’ve come from…and my background, I don’t want to go back there, I don’t take anything for granted.”

“…that first round (against Miller)… I couldn’t of gotten away with that against Anderson Silva. You’ve got to be on the money right from the start, and you know, the first round wasn’t good enough… I know Chael Sonnen is fighting Mike Munoz for number one contender, so obviously I’m not going to get a title shot anytime soon. But… I think one more fight against a solid opponent, then yeah, I think I should get my shot real soon, and that’s what I want.”

“I want to earn my right, you know, I don’t want people after to say ‘ah, he was just given the title shot’…I want people to say ‘yeah he deserves it, he’s beaten the good guys.’

UFC on FOX 2: Evans vs. Davis hosts middleweight bout between Michael Bisping (12-3) vs. Demian Maia (9-3) on January 28th at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. A victory over Demian Maia could be a key stepping stone to the title shot.

Surprisingly, Randy chose Bisping over his former training partner at Team Quest, Chael Sonnen, for a title shot. Is Randy right in saying that Bisping should get a chance at UFC gold after a win over Maia? Or should the UFC change their plans and make him fight the winner of Sonnen vs. Munoz to determine the true number one contender?

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